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South Korean families pray for relatives who vanished into North Korean prisons a decade ago

CityNews
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At least six South Koreans who have all but disappeared since being arrested and convicted in North Korea in the past decade or so.

Three missionaries were involved in covert efforts to spread Christianity in the North by providing North Korean visitors room and board and teaching them the Bible .

North Korea maintains a virtual ban on religion and considers foreign evangelism a threat to its ruling Kim family's cult of personality.

South Korean missionaries likely won’t have received the same treatment, but their conditions would still be better than those of North Korean prisoners.

Some experts say North Korea has returned American captives while holding onto South Koreans because it cares more about relations with the U.S. and is deeply hostile to its neighbor.

But others argue that Seoul hasn't tried hard enough to secure the return of its nationals.